Project launched to introduce low-carbon rice farming

[webfact]

Project launched to introduce low-carbon rice farming

By The Nation

 

File photo

 

The Thai Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives and the German government's international co-operation agency on Friday announced the launch of a joint public-private project aimed at transforming the central plains of Thailand to low-carbon rice farming.

 

The goal is to boost rice-producing capacity and add value to Thai rice and penetrate new markets.

 

Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister Grisada Boonrach said his office had joined with the Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, which is the German federal enterprise supporting sustainable development worldwide, to carry out the project, called Thai Rice NAMA (Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions). 

 

The project received financial support worth 14.9 million euros (about Bt530 million) from the governments of Germany, the UK, Denmark as well as the European Union through the multi-donor Nationally NAMA facility project (2018-2023).

 

Under this project, some 100,000 local rice farming households covering 2.8 million rai of rice fields in six provinces of Chainat, Angthong, Pathum Thani, Sing Buri, Ayutthaya, and Suphan Buri would shift to a sustainable method of rice-growing. This is intended to increase their productivity while also cutting greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to the rising global temperature, the minister said. 

 

The project's main objectives were; to create benefits to farmers in terms of the promotion of zero emission rice-growing and the promotion of Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) for rice; to develop and expand business that provide technology to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from rice-growing; and to motivate the rice-producing sector to apply the method that can cut greenhouse gas emissions, Grisada said.

 

Deputy Permanent Secretary for Agriculture and Cooperatives, Doojduan Sasanavin, said Thailand has pledged to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 20-25 per cent within the year 2030 in the Paris Agreement within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. 

 

This will be done by applying the King Rama IX's 'sufficiency economy' principle, reduce the use of fossil fuels and applying alternative energy that is environmentally friendly instead. 

 

The project - having a revolving fund and providing training to farmers - would have farmers shifting from their current method of rice growing to apply the low greenhouse gas-emitting way, use appropriate rice seed strain and related technologies (such as the land-levelling, the alternated wet and dry water management for rice fields, the fertiliser application based on soil testing and analysing, and the rice straw and stubble management to avoid applying a haze-creating method of burning). 

 

The agricultural technology service providing companies also got special "green loans" from Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives, she said.

 

Doojduan said this project would benefits 454,200 rice farmers and agriculture technology service providers, while the 2.58 million rais of target rice field in the rainy season and off-season rice growing were expected to yield a total of 4 million tonnes per year.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30369940

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2019-05-28

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[geoffbezoz]

I was not aware that they grew rice in Germany, must be something new to give them the ability to provide support ????

 

On a more serious note, for all those Brexiteers and anti-EU folk on here, just note where the financial support of this project is coming from

 

"The project received financial support worth 14.9 million euros (about Bt530 million) from the governments of Germany, the UK, Denmark as well as the European Union through the multi-donor Nationally NAMA facility project (2018-2023). "

Edited May 28, 2019 by geoffbezoz

[RotMahKid]

So who will get the money, the farmers or the Thai Government, because for some reason I am afraid this money will end u[ in one or more pockets or Benz dealers.

When the harvesting is done, who will check the farmers will not burn the left overs?

[geoffbezoz]

1 minute ago, RotMahKid said:

So who will get the money, the farmers or the Thai Government, because for some reason I am afraid this money will end u[ in one or more pockets or Benz dealers.

When the harvesting is done, who will check the farmers will not burn the left overs?

Well, lets guess should we ? Thai Junta, full of Thai Generals, who treat little people (the farmers) like dirt, supported by the Elite who get there "cut" always, wonder what the answer to your question is ?

[CGW]

32 minutes ago, webfact said:

The goal is to boost rice-producing capacity and add value to Thai rice and penetrate new markets.

How ridiculous has the "world" become in its quest to be PC?

Boost rice production - they can't sell what they are growing now, thus the move to other products like sugar cane! ????

[jaltsc]

"...the launch of a joint public-private project aimed at transforming the central plains of Thailand to low-carbon rice farming."

 

This should be as successful as the no burning policy. What is it that they say about old dogs and new tricks? From what I've seen, old dogs are more amenable to change than people who have been doing the same thing for centuries. 

Edited May 28, 2019 by jaltsc

[GreasyFingers]

5 hours ago, webfact said:

a joint public-private project aimed at transforming the central plains of Thailand to low-carbon rice farming.

You would think they could have had a photo of rice growing on "plains" and not in the hills that we do around here.

[Krataiboy]

Well, at least the buffalo will be pleased.

[canopy]

Any new, fresh approaches like this are welcome over the current dogmatic, money losing system of farming and I look forward to seeing if they achieve some payoffs. My concern for them is they may not fully understand or spent enough thought on measures to stop the burning from taking place. This could turn out to be an area they aren't able to come to grips with and become an achilles heel because it is something they might expect to be easy enough to do in other countries, but won't be easily accepted here.